10 Outrageous But Forgotten Political Scandals

2. Berlusconi’s Young Girls

Former Italian Prime Minister and frequent criminal defendant Silvio Berlusconi is no stranger to scandal. He has been convicted of tax evasion, which Italians pretty much shrugged off. But that’s not the scandal that led him to resign. Berlusconi has been repeatedly accused of keeping illicit company with underage girls. In 2009 his wife of 19 years filed for a divorce and publicly accused him of “consorting with minors.” That same year girls began to allege they had been paid to attend parties at Berlusconi’s residence. In 2010 what is known as the Ruby scandal broke, when Berlusconi allegedly paid for sex with 17-year-old Moroccan belly dancer Karima El Mahroug, who was known as “Ruby the heart stealer.” Berlusconi denied the charges, but his political reputation was forever damaged.